...and NOT going into town

Weather on its way in.

We're finally getting some decent rainfall here on the Central Coast, which is wonderful since any amount we get puts a dent in the colossal drought we are currently undergoing. We're not out of the woods yet, not by any stretch of the imagination, but at least we have green hills again and the fire danger has dropped.

But this rainy day also reminded me of the other side of my town/country double life, which is the days I do NOT go into town, for weather-related reasons.  No, we don't get huge Polar-Vortex storms or below-zero temperatures here, but California is flood and mudslide-prone, so we're not completely safe from weather-related problems when it rains a good amount.

Not everyone has the sense to come in from the rain.

It doesn't even bother me that I can't use my solar oven or my clothesline right now due to the weather.  Hanging wash in front of the fire is a practical solution and, to me, a fire is no less cheerful than a sunny day. We get enough sunshine to last a lifetime in one year out here, so believe me when I say I don't miss it on the days it's absent.

Indoor Task #1: Laundry detergent making.

On days like this, it's honestly just safer to stay home because of my fellow man as well. For some reason, we have some of the worst drivers in the country living here (too hard to explain why right now, but maybe in a future post) so when the streets get wet, it's good to not be out there if it's not absolutely necessary. 

There are always plenty of accidents and crazy behavior happening on our highways and roads on days like these, and avoiding all that is one of the joys of living in a place with dirt roads that tend to wash-out in a good storm.  It's a great excuse to stay home. We have a lot of spontaneous creeks which spring up in very inconvenient places along the roads as well, along with minor mudslides, so driving around these grapevine-covered hills on the way into town can be a definite challenge -- even if you are a good driver.

I am actually one of those people who plans their week around the weather; if a storm looks significant, I will be on the internet  checking to see when it will arrive, and make a serious attempt to be back home, inside, with chores done by the time it starts. Our view also gives us a great view of the squall lines of approaching storms, meaning you can time your retreat back to the Great Indoors with perfect timing on most stormy days.

Today's Deep House Day has been about making a huge batch of homemade laundry detergent (enough to last until next summer, I believe, but we will see), some pumpkin bread with some of October's pumpkins, and later on, (I hope) reading some of the library books I picked up in town last week. Oh, and wrapping presents as well.  All good things.

Indoor task #2: Pumpkin bread.

Tomorrow I'm sure the sun will be back out, like a predictable old boyfriend who just keeps coming back around despite the fact that we take him for granted.

  But today is all about the dark skies, the thrumming of rain on the roof, and All Things Indoors.  Fine by me.

Best night of the year

Christmas Eve is absolutely my favorite night of the year.  Folklore would tell us that Samhain, or the time around Halloween, is when the veil between the worlds is the thinnest and the spirits of the next world are more present in ours.  I respectfully disagree.  To me, it's around this time of year when the veil between worlds is thinnest; when you can almost feel the tendrils of Heaven being drawn down to earth and a little nearer into our reality. 


People give more charitably this time of year.  This Christmas, for example, despite the recession, mystery "Santas" are going into Kmart stores all over the country and paying off stranger's lawaway account balances, to ensure these strangers' children have toys and gifts to open on Christmas morning.  People donate more food to the needy, and ensure the elderly have a warm meal and some company, because they recognize that no one should be alone at Christmas.  Carolers will stroll the halls of hospitals and nursing homes tonight, carrying Pointsettas and comfort to those they sing for, including those whose time on this earth is drawing short.  


I believe the repeated act of blessing others brings the ideals of the heavenly world down here to earth, and those things happen most during this time of year.  That's why I love Christmas Eve more than any other night. It's the time when the blessings flow the strongest, when those who give do so, abundantly, and those who need, receive the most.  Tomorrow it will be all about wrapping paper, electronic toys that buzz and light up, family dynamics and enough food to feed an army. But tonight is all about the blessing, and the feeling that when the night falls and our world goes quiet, this sometimes selfish and troubled planet will intersect with God's kingdom of Heaven just a little bit. And we will be the better for it.


Merry Christmas, everyone.

A Festivus for the rest of us!

At this point the holidays are backing up like jumbo jets over O'Hare. First Chanukah, then the Solstice, and December 23....Festivus!  (At least for fans of "Seinfeld.")  


Wishing everyone success in their Feats of Strength tonight.

George Washington slept off his hangover here

So last night I decided to make George Washington's original colonial recipe for egg nog, which he came up with himself (perhaps with a little help from Martha) and which I found on the  Farmer's Almanac website.  Like many people my age, my only experience with egg nog came from a carton, bought at a supermarket during the holiday season.  Supermarket egg nog contains some of the same ingredients Washington's does, but adds stuff like high fructose corn syrup, carrrageenan, gum arabic, and mono and deglycerides to give it the super-thick egg nog taste we are all familiar with.  I wanted to try real homemade egg nog to see what it is actually supposed to taste like.


I was right, it was very different.  Colonial egg nog is, more or less, simply a rather plain platform unto which Mr. Washington loaded an unbelievable amount of alcohol.  I was surprised how bland it tasted without any liquor added (I was making it in a house where teenagers could have it, so I left the booze out).  It's rather like melted vanilla ice cream, without the vanilla flavoring.  Very eggy.  And yes, it does have raw eggs in it, but I'm guessing with the amount of liquor Washington added to it 1) any pathogens or bacteria did not stand a chance of living or reproducing in it, and 2) no one remembered it as "bland" if, in fact, they remembered anything at all the next morning.  Which I'm guessing they didn't.


So here it is:

George Washington's Colonial Egg Nog

"One quart cream, one quart milk, one dozen tablespoons sugar, one pint brandy, 1/2 pint rye whiskey, 1/2 pint Jamaica rum, 1/4 pint sherry—mix liquor first, then separate yolks and whites of eggs, add sugar to beaten yolks, mix well. Add milk and cream, slowly beating. Beat whites of eggs until stiff and fold slowly into 

mixture. Let set in cool place for several days. Taste frequently."

Bottom's up

P.S.  I did actually add the liquor Mr. Washington recommended after the kiddos had gone to bed.  After all, he is the Father of our Nation, so it seemed somehow disrespectful to not take his full advice.  Alcoholically enhanced, this egg nog packs a bunch.  It's kind of like drinking tiramisu.  Delicious, as long as you don't have to drive your horse and carriage home after you've had some.